


New Additions

by mishmewisha



Category: Firebringer - Team StarKid
Genre: Angst, Canon Lesbian Relationship, Chaos, F/F, Family, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kid Fic, but they got a kid now, honestly i have no idea what im doing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-17 07:22:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29221635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mishmewisha/pseuds/mishmewisha
Summary: Jemilla didn’t have that problem though. She recognized that cry from her time with the Neanderthals. Her instincts immediately jumped into action and she ran to the door, completely ignoring Zazzalil’s protests that insisted she was going to get murdered. Jemilla pushed open the door. She was right. It was a baby laying in a small, handmade basket filled with leaves. But it was alone. Where was its mother?“Zazzy… It- it’s a baby.”orjemilla and zazzalil's adventures through unexpected parenthood
Relationships: Jemilla & Zazzalil (Firebringer), Jemilla/Zazzalil (Firebringer)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 19





	1. Breakfast?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> zazzy and j-mils find a baby!

Jemilla and Zazzalil were quite the pair. Ever since the Chorn had gifted them with all the knowledge there ever would be or ever was, their tribe had been booming with progress. Not more than two years ago they were living in a damp, stinky cave with no source of light other than the fireflies. Now, after Jemilla and Zazzalil decided to combine their skills, they were living in small huts of clay, wood, and grass. They had small fireplaces inside, fur blankets, carved decorations, and more food than they could’ve dreamed of before the Chorn showed up. 

Beyond just their own tribe, Jemilla had begun communications with other groups in their area. They spoke similar languages and were able to get along just fine so it was assumed that there was some cross-breeding somewhere in the past few generations. This just made Jemilla’s argument to combine the tribes stronger. They never did it but they stayed close, trading goods and services. The surrounding tribes appreciated the fire and the spears while Jemilla and Zazzalil’s tribe was really loving the carved bone jewelry and decorations and ropes made from long grass. Life was perfect.

⫷⫸

Zazzalil woke up curled under a warm fur blanket, a small fire crackling somewhere in the room. She found herself a little disappointed to see Jemilla wasn’t sleeping peacefully in her arms. Zazzalil always insisted on being the big spoon. Jemilla thought it was adorable, Zazzalil said it was because she wanted to protect her. So, to Zazzalil, it was a little scary to wake up and not see her smokin’ hot wife safe and sound right next to her. But thankfully, she turned her head just to see Jemilla sitting in front of the fire, cooking them a nice breakfast. That put a smile on her face.

“Good morning, babe,” Zazzalil called, her voice laced with laziness and exhaustion. They had had a long night yesterday. Who knew loving each other was so tiring?

Jemilla smiled, turning her head to see her wife. She always loved waking up to see Zazzalil completely sprawled out on their bed. She used to find her laziness pretty annoying, but now she found it just adorable. Plus, she knew what her inventions could do now, so she let the laziness slide.

“Good morning. Sleep well?” Jemilla asked, turning back to her current project: breakfast.

Zazzalil shrugged, nestling into the pillows of animal skin and cotton fluff. “Yeah, I guess. I would’ve slept better if you stayed in bed longer.”

Jemilla rolled her eyes. “Mhm. Maybe tomorrow. But I thought that you’d maybe appreciate some breakfast.”

Zazzalil sighed. “I guess. But I also really appreciate it when my gorgeous peacemaker is sleeping peacefully in my arms. Safe and sound.”

Jemilla laughed softly. “Babe, I can guarantee that I won’t be murdered when I move two feet–“ 

Jemilla was promptly cut off by the sound of rustling outside. Then something was dropped on the ground before footsteps could be heard running away. Then finally, it was silent. They both knew they woke up earlier than most people in the tribe so they were understandably a little freaked out. Their people were lazy. They were still sleeping.

Zazzalil had completely frozen when she heard the noises outside. That was unexpected. “...How do you know you won’t be–“ 

This time, Zazzalil was cut off by a wail. A wail she had heard before but she couldn’t remember what animal it was from. 

Jemilla didn’t have that problem though. She recognized that cry from her time with the Neanderthals. Her instincts immediately jumped into action and she ran to the door, completely ignoring Zazzalil’s protests that insisted she was going to get murdered. Jemilla pushed open the door. She was right. It was a baby laying in a small, handmade basket filled with leaves. But it was alone. Where was its mother?

“Zazzy… It- it’s a baby.”

Zazzalil had a very interesting instinct kick in. Jemilla’s motherly instincts were quick to jump into action, Zazzalil’s hunger kicked in for her. “Breakfast?”

Jemilla furrowed her eyebrows. “Wha– Zazzalil, no! You know we don’t eat baby’s anymore!”

Zazzalil sighed, feeling quite disappointed. “I hate that you’re right,” she groaned.

Jemilla picked up the child. It was a small girl, no more than a few months old. The last baby born that Jemilla knew of was Emberly’s and Grant’s. He was naturally larger as he was a biological male but he had to be around the same age as this kid. He was born no more than four months ago.

“It’s okay, kid. You’re safe,” Jemilla cooed, carefully carrying it inside their small hut. Holding babies was never her forte. But thankfully, the baby calmed down a little as Jemilla rocked her. “Yeah… you’re already feeling better, huh?” She smiled a little. This was oddly bringing her a lot of joy.

Zazzalil was in slight disbelief. Jemilla seriously couldn’t be considering keeping this thing. “Jemilla, what are you doing? You know we can’t keep this baby.”

Jemilla shook her head, her eyes not leaving the child’s face. “Come on, Zazz. They clearly don’t want her. And it’s not like we don’t have enough supplies. We’re keeping her.”

“No.”

⫷⫸

And so they kept her, giving her the name Raksha. Zazzalil insisted on picking since Jemilla insisted on keeping it. They were in for a long chaotic ride, but they were ready. Or at least Jemilla was. Zazzalil was still on the fence about keeping her. She still thought this baby would make a nice breakfast. But Jemilla insisted. This was going to be their child… Hopefully, it won’t die.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed it! leave kudos or something if you wanna idk


	2. Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just some little family fluff ya know

Three years. Three years full of love and chaos and confusion. Jemilla and Zazzalil had been on quite the ride with this kid and she was still just a toddler. Within the first few days of being with her moms, Raksha had shown she was pretty stubborn in just about every way. Jemilla had gotten her to drink milk for a little while, but pretty soon she was stealing meat right off of Zazzalil’s plate. And as soon as she was able to walk confidently on her own, she was running around the village like a madwoman. That’s what Zazzalil called her. She was a strong one. And Zazzalil had grown attached.

Everyday, Jemilla and Zazzalil would wake up to Raksha laying in their bed right between them. They put her in her crib every night, but somehow, she crawled out every time. She insisted on sleeping with her moms. Neither of them knew why but they didn’t really mind. They were both absolutely in love with their daughter. Stubbornness and all.

⫷⫸

This morning was just like all the others. Jemilla and Zazzalil have a very distinct memory of putting Raksha in her crib the night before. But when they open their eyes again in the morning, she’s right beside them. Stubborn little kid. Just like Zazzalil.

Zazzalil couldn’t help but smile when she saw her daughter beside her that day. Some mornings, she wished she could curl up with Jemilla all day and leave the kid with Emberly or something. But most days, she enjoys the extra company. Even if she still wants to cuddle with her wife.

“Hey. Raksha,” she whispered, gently shaking her daughter awake.

Raksha’s eyes opened before immediately closing again. The roof on their hut didn’t keep all that much sunlight out come morning. “What, mama?” She asked, no concern for her volume.

“Shh…” Zazzalil cooed, putting a finger to her lips. “Mommy’s still asleep, baby. I was wondering if you wanted to surprise her with something nice, yeah?”

Raksha’s face immediately lit up. She may make an attempt to run away at least once a week but she still loved her moms more than anything. She could never leave for more than an hour. “Really?” She gasped, trying to keep her voice down. “What are we gonna do for her?”

Zazzalil grinned. “I’ve got an idea. Come on, let’s go outside, baby.” She carefully scooted out of bed before picking up her daughter. They snuck out the front door, Zazzalil having to remind her daughter to not giggle too loud.

⫷⫸

After a little bit of conversation, Zazzalil and Raksha decided to make the three of them matching flower crowns. Zazzalil remembered doing that with Keeri when they were kids. This would be a nice walk down memory lane for her.

They spent a little while gathering up different kinds of flowers. Raksha loved the daisies and Zazzalil liked the poppies. So they gathered a whole bunch of both in a small basket before sitting under a tree near their home. The same basket that Raksha had arrived in seeing as they hadn’t been able to replicate the weaving yet.

Zazzalil pulled her daughter into her lap. Now she just had to teach her to make the crowns. “Alright. So, today you’re gonna learn to make flower crowns, baby. It’s super easy.” Zazzalil reached over and picked up a couple flowers. “Mom taught you to braid, right?”

Raksha nodded. “Mhm! Mhm! She let me do her hair.”

Zazzalil smiled fondly at the memory. Jemilla’s hair had looked objectively bad but they all thought it was adorable. “Well, we’re gonna do it just like that, okay? So we’re gonna take these nice long stems and braid them together.” She tied three flowers with long stems together and did a braid stitch. “Like that, yeah?” She held it up to show her daughter.

Raksha nodded. “Okay. Can you make a crown for me, mama?” She asked, tuning her head to look at her mom hopefully.

Zazzalil furrowed her eyebrows. “You don’t wanna make one for yourself?”

“Mm…” Raksha thought about it for a second. “No. I want you to make me one.”

Zazzalil laughed a little. This kid had clearly picked up her laziness. “Alright then. Looks like I’ll be making you a flower crown.” She set to work, tightly weaving together the flowers until it was large enough to go around Raksha's head. By the time she had finished up on her daughter’s headpiece, Raksha was asleep against her chest. This kid really was just like her. She let Raksha sleep and set to work on Jemilla’s flower crown. Zazzalil didn’t need one for herself. She just wanted her girls to be happy.

Soon, Zazzalil heard footsteps approaching, soft and careful. She smiled to herself. It was none other than Jemilla coming to join her. She felt her beautiful wife sit next to her against the trunk of the tree. 

“Hey, babe,” Jemilla said quietly, giving Zazzalil a kiss.

Zazzalil couldn’t help but smile, pausing her work to return her wife’s kiss. “Hey. What’re you doing out here, hm?”

Jemilla shrugged. “I wanted to know what my surprise was.”

“Aw, you heard us?” Zazzalil pouted. “It was supposed to be a surprise.”

Jemilla laughed softly, leaning against her wife. “You can’t keep anything from me, Zazzy.”

Zazzalil sighed, going back to her flower crown. “So much for your surprise party,” she joked. 

“Mhm.” Jemilla smiled to herself, cuddling into her wife’s side as she watched her work. She was always so good at making new things like that.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Raksha began to shift around. She blinked her eyes open and looked up just to see both of her moms right there. She grinned. “Mommy, you weren’t here before!” She crawled into Jemilla's lap happily.

Jemilla giggled a little. “I just got here, baby.” She wrapped her arms around Raksha, settling her in her lap. “We were waiting for you to wake up. I was wondering if you two wanted breakfast, hm?”

Zazzalil gasped. “You made breakfast and didn’t tell me? You know that’s my favorite part of the day.”

Raksha nodded. “Yeah! Mine too!”

Jemilla breathed out a little laugh. “Yes, I know. I know very well. That’s why I have a special breakfast ready for you two back at home.” 

Raksha immediately jumped to her feet, grabbing Zazzalil’s hand to pull her up. “Come on, mama! Mommy has a surprise for us!”

Zazzalil laughed a little, pushing herself up. “I’m coming, I’m coming. Lead the way, baby.” She took Jemilla’s hand to make sure she followed too.

Raksha enthusiastically led her mothers back to the house. Meanwhile, Jemilla leaned over and whispered to her wife. “Remember when you didn’t want to keep her?”

Zazzalil gave her a little shove. “Shut up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ty for reading! i hope you liked it


	3. Celebration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a big party and a big surprise! i had a lot of fun writing this

Seven wonderful years since Zazzalil and Jemilla found their beautiful daughter. Every year when the anniversary rolled around, the whole tribe had a party around a big campfire once the sun set over the hills and they could see the stars. It just so happened to be that day. Zazzalil and Jemilla had been preparing for this anniversary for weeks. They would never know exactly when Raksha was born so they thought of this day as her birthday. And this year wasn’t an ordinary one either. Their tribe had always considered seven as a lucky number. So, since it was Raksha’s seventh birthday, she had a big surprise coming. Not till that night though.

Jemilla had sent Raksha off to play with Emberly and Grant's son so she and Zazzalil could prepare. They wanted this night to be special. It had to be. For Raksha.

⫷⫸

Zazzalil sat in their small family hut, frantically trying to finish the necklace of small bones for her daughter in time. She had started a few weeks prior but Zazzalil being Zazzalil, she had put it off till the last minute. It’d be fine. She would have it done.

Jemilla was meanwhile working on the biggest surprise of the night. It was going to be her big seven-year gift. She just had to get it ready. She had been actually working with it for weeks nonstop, trying to make sure nothing would go wrong that night. It had to be perfect. She insisted.

Jemilla walked into the hut, holding a little bundle in her arms. She wasn’t surprised to see that Zazzalil had procrastinated on her gift. She always did. “Whatcha doin’ there, Zazzy?”

Zazzalil jumped. She hadn’t heard the door open let alone Jemilla sneak up on her. “Ah!- Oh my duck, Jemilla! Don’t do that!” She shook her head, going back to her work. “And for your information, I am finishing up Raksha’s gift for tonight.”

Jemilla nodded, sitting next to her on the floor. “Mhm. Don’t you mean starting?”

“Hey- No!” Zazzalil gave her wife a nudge. “I started this last month!”

“You mean you got the supplies last month and then didn’t do anything with them.”

“...Shut up.” Zazzalil looked back to the necklace, carefully stringing the bones onto the cord. “What about you? How’s the big surprise coming, hm?”

Jemilla smiled a bit. She had been working with a neighboring tribe for a little while to bring her daughter something extra special. “Well…” She pulled the top layer of her bundle down just to reveal a small wolf pup. “Pretty good I’d say.”

Zazzalil looked over, immediately smiling. Their tribe had always looked up to animals—especially ducks but that’s not an era most of them like to talk about—so being able to befriend them was extra special. “You actually did it? I can, like, pet it?”

Jemilla laughed softly, nodding. “Yeah. We just have to keep her fed. But she’ll be a good guard for Raksha. She’s been able to follow scents already.”

Zazzalil nodded, completely transfixed on the wolf. “Uh-huh, yeah, can I hold her? Oh, wait, first, what’s her name? I gotta know.”

“Her name is Ignis. It means fire. For you.”

Zazzalil blushed. “Jemilla! Gosh, I didn’t know it was my birthday too.”

Jemilla gave her a look. “You know it’s not.”

“Just a joke, jeez.”

⫷⫸

Meanwhile, just outside the little hut, Raksha sat in the tall grass, trying to figure out what her moms were getting her for her birthday. She had been making guesses to them for weeks but they’d never tell her if she was right or wrong. But she was gonna figure it out if it was the last thing she did. 

She leaned her head against the wall, trying to figure out what they were saying inside. Nothing. She leaned closer, focusing hard on the muffled voices inside. But this just made her jump out of her skin when her friend tapped her shoulder.

“Hey–“

Raksha jumped back, slapping her hand over her mouth so as to not alert the moms of her presence. She looked up. It was Kaa, Emberly and Grant’s son. Her bestest friend.

“Kaa! Shush!” She whispered, giving him a look. “I’m trying to… what’s the word?”

“Uh…” Kaa sat next to her in the grass. “Listen?”

“...I don’t think that’s what I was thinking of but sure.” She leaned into the wall again. Something about a big surprise? “Can you hear anything at all?” She asked, getting a little frustrated.

Kaa shook his head, messing with the grass in front of him. “Noooope. What do you think your party's gonna be like tonight? Mom and dad keep saying it’s gonna be special.”

Raksha grumbled a little, quitting trying to listen. “I dunno. Mama said there was gonna be a big campfire and stuff and some surprise. And then mom said there would be dancing too. But that surprise! They’ve been talking about it for weeks and they wouldn’t tell me anything, Kaa!” She paused before gasping dramatically. She basically tackled her friend to the ground, getting on top. They were little kids so any of the implications went straight over their heads. 

“Do you know anything? Come on! You’ve gotta know something?” She asked, starting to forget that the walls were thin.

He shook his head. “Wha- No! Why would I know anything?”

“I don’t know! I just want answers!” She huffed, falling off of her friend and onto the grass. She laid on her back for no more than a few seconds before her mother appeared, standing over the two of them. 

“What’re you two doing out here, hm?” Jemilla asked, her arms crossed and free of any surprises.

“We-” Kaa felt Raksha beside him give him a little kick. “Hey-” He sighed. “Nothing, peacemaker,” 

Jemilla nodded. “Mhm. Raksha?” She gave her a look.

“I just wanna know what my surprise is, mama!” Raksha complained, hopping to her feet and giving her moms arm a tug. “Please? Just a hint at least?”

Jemilla sighed. “No, baby. Not until tonight. You’re gonna like it though. I promise.” She ran her hand through Raksha’s fluffy, brown hair as she pouted.

“I really can’t even have a hint?”

Jemilla looked her daughter’s face over. She could see the disappointment. “Raksha…” She watched her make big puppy dog eyes. Oh god damnit. “Fine. Fine, you can have a hint.”

Raksha’s face immediately lit up and she began to bounce on her bare feet excitedly. “Oh, thank you, mom! What is it! What is it!”

Jemilla smiled a bit, kneeling down to be at eye level. “Alright. Your hint is…” She thought for a moment. “This gift is going to help protect you from harm.”

Raksha furrowed her eyebrows. “In what way? Like physical harm? Like it’s gonna eat things? Or like how the duck protects the tribe from his spot in the heavens?”

Jemilla’s eyebrows knit together. “Honey, the duck isn’t a god, it’s just a duck. Has Ducker been talking to you again?” She asked, getting a nod in response. “Don’t listen to anything he says about gods, okay? Gods aren’t real.” 

“Okay, mama. But what about my surprise?”

Jemilla stood back up, brushing off her skirt. “You’ll find out exactly what it is tonight, baby,” She reminded her daughter.

Raksha groaned, laying back down in the grass with her head next to Kaa’s. “Fine. I hope it’s good.”

“Oh, it is.” Jemilla gave her a little wink. “You two have fun!” She teased, disappearing back into the hut.

“...The duck is definitely a God,” Kaa said, nodding to himself.

Raksha nodded back. “Agreed.”

⫷⫸

Finally, it was time for a party. 

Raksha stood in front of a large, crackling bonfire, a blindfold over her eyes. She had felt something that seemed like a flower crown get placed on her head and a necklace get clipped around her neck. They both felt familiar but she knew they were new. Then, two warm hands settled on her shoulders to keep her still. Mom. Raksha gently leaned back against her mother’s torso as she waited. She heard soft footsteps approach her and then stop in front of her but no one said a word for a moment.

Finally, Zazzalil leaned down and whispered in her ear. “Ready for your surprise, baby?” She asked, making eye contact with Jemilla. Jemilla had been the one to stop in front of them, said surprise in hand.

Raksha nodded quickly, not daring to say a word. It was so quiet. She didn’t want to mess this up.

Zazzalil smiled, amused by her daughter's silent enthusiasm. She gently kissed her head and removed her blindfold. She was surprised to see Raksha’s eyes were still closed after she took off the blindfold.

“Can I look, mama?” She whispered.

Zazzalil breathed out a small laugh. “Yes, you can look.”

Raksha blinked her eyes open. It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the bright light of the campfire but once she did, her eyes focused on her mom. She was standing right in front of her with something in her hands. Was that…?

“Did you get me a dog?” Raksha asked, looking between her moms.

Jemilla smiled. “Mhm. C’mere, baby. You’ve gotta meet her.”

Raksha hesitantly stepped forward, the leaves crunching under her bare feet. Then, she heard the pieces of her necklace clank together. She looked down at it, getting easily distracted. It was just like her mom’s. She looked up at her. Zazzalil just winked and gestured for her to go to Jemilla. 

Raksha did as told and Jemilla nearly immediately set the small pup in her daughter’s arms.

“Her name is Ignis,” Jemilla told her. “You’re going to have to help train her and feed her, and in return, she's going to protect and help you. Do you understand?”

Raksha nodded, staring down at the pup in her arms. “I understand, mama.” She looked back up to her mother.

Jemilla smiled. “In that case, we’ve got a party to start.” She scooped Raksha up in her arms and they did just that. There was food and songs and jokes. It was the biggest party the tribe had had in a while and they were truly making the most of it.

⫷⫸

As the night began to shift closer to its end, the tribe decided to bring back an old tradition: the cave floor. Back when they still lived in a cave, they would have small shows to entertain themselves. Schwoopsie would get up and tell jokes, Keeri would dance, Smelly-Balls would… do whatever he did, and they all laughed and sang and had fun. And on a special night like this, they just had to bring it back. But this time, they were out under the stars. No more being afraid of the night.

Schwoopsie rushed up onto the designated stage area that was well lit by the large bonfire, her dandelion microphone in hand. She made herself the designated announcer for the evening. “Hey, folks. Are you all doing well?” She asked, getting a small cheer in response from her tribe. “Oh, that was sad. Come on! Are you doing good!” She got a larger cheer that time, just enough to satisfy her. 

“That’s perfect, folks. It is a special girl’s birthday tonight so if you weren’t doing good, I’d have to kill ya!” She laughed at herself and got a few scattered laughs from her tribe. “Ah, anyways. First up on the cave floor, we’ve got Grant-”

“Grunt”

“Grant will be… What are you doing?” She looked at him. 

“Painting a turkey,” He whispered.

“Painting a turkey! Round of applause everyone!” Schwoopsie led the whole tribe in a round of applause. “And… the cave floor is yours, Grant.”

Grunt sighed. “It’s Grunt actually. But anyway, uh…” He looked around. “Oh! I um… I forgot my paint.” He paused before pulling an Emberly. He squatted down and did his business right into a bowl.

Zazzalil gasped. “Grant, not on the stage!”

Raksha’s eyes widened, holding her new pet closer. “Why is he doing that, mama?”

Jemilla quickly covered her daughter’s eyes. “Don’t look, baby.”

Keeri furrowed her eyebrows. “Is that shit?”

Emberly covered her son’s eyes. “Kaa, please don’t do what your dad does.”

Kaa nodded. “Okay, mom.”

Grunt finished up. “Alright! Now we just…” He set to work on his painting as the entire tribe relaxed. He painted the body of the turkey and then went in and did the details. He was just about to turn it to show the tribe until… “Fuck! I forgot the eyes, hold on!” He got back to work as the entire tribe sighed. Then, finally, it was done. “Perfect.” He turned it around to show everyone and the tribe unenthusiastically applauded.

Zazzalil signaled to Schwoopsie to get back up there so she did. She walked back onto the cave floor as they called it. “Thank you, Grant, for showing us your beautiful painting skills! You can… Yeah, you can go now.” She nodded for him to leave the stage and he awkwardly did just that. “Alright, next up we’ve got Keeri doing a song and dance!”

Keeri rushed to the front but stopped by Zazzalil. She whispered something in her ear and with a bit of tugging, got Zazzalil on the stage with her.

“And Zazzalil apparently!” Schwoopsie said. “Round of applause!” Schwoopsie clapped, exiting the cave floor once again.

“Okay, so,” Keeri began. “I really wanted this night to be special so why not show Raksha a glimpse into our old life? This is a song we sang when we got annoyed at Jemilla. Please enjoy.” She stepped back and gave Zazzalil a nudge to signal her to start before cutting in again. “Oh! And make sure to join in if you know it.”

Zazzalil sighed. She hadn’t sung this song in so long but she was sure she remembered it. Here goes nothing. 

“ _I don’t really wanna do the work today…_ ” She chanted, finding herself oddly remembering the steps. She could see Jemilla giggling but she could fix that.

The rest of the tribe joined in on the chanting on the repeated part and a few joined in on the dance. But Zazzalil soon moved into her solo which she used to absolutely tease the hell out of her wife. “ _Just figured out how to move, how to sing, how to groove, and now you’re telling me, I gotta work today…_ ” She grooved till she was right in front of her wife and pulled her to her feet, leaning in a little.

“Gross!” Raksha exclaimed as her moms shared a kiss between lines.

“ _You know that feeling when you find the thing that blows your mind and next thing you know they wanna take it away…_ ” Zazzalil pulled Jemilla onto the stage as she sang.

“I wasn’t trying to take it away…” Jemilla argued, staying close to her wife.

The tribe continued their song. After a few lines, Jemilla was ready for her own solo.

“ _Now, listen girls let me reiterate. I know it’s hard to just work with no play. I hope we all understand the importance of what we do and how this world is full of obstacles we gotta get through…_ ” Jemilla booped her daughter and her pet on the nose as she sang before heading back to her wife.

“ _We got so much to do…_ ” She did her signature hips, heading closer to Zazzalil. “ _Already you and me have made discoveries that have helped our kind in so many ways…_ ” Jemilla placed a hand on Zazzalil’s thigh. Lesbians.

“Jemilla!” Zazzalil slapped her hand away, hearing their daughter giggle from the audience.

“ _I hope you're feeling power, working through the shroud of mystery, and our history's growing every day…_ ” Jemilla wrapped her arms around Zazzalil after she got yelled at. She led her in a nice dance as the music continued.

“Aw, come on, Jemilla! We love to mess with you!” Emberly jumped in, taking over the song and singing her own solo. 

Soon, the song began to approach its end and Jemilla’s second solo came up. She used this as an opportunity to include her daughter.

“ _So many wondrous things here for our kind. A world of tools and knowledge left to find…_ ” Jemilla took her daughter’s hand and pulled her up to join the tribe in the song. She carefully got on her knees to sing to her. “ _And I hope to bring you there because you know how much I care…_ ”

Zazzalil decided to do a tiny rewrite here and join her wife in singing. “ _So we’ll join each other, hand and hand, and try to help ourselves to understand, the world is what we make of it together…_ ” Zazzalil kneeled next to her wife, smiling at her.

Raksha nuzzled herself in between her moms, happily listening to them sing. Best birthday ever.

The song continued on. When they got to the ‘ooo…’ at the end, the tribe slowly began to disperse, still singing and humming the tune of the song. Jemilla scooped her daughter up in her arms and her family did the same. They headed back for the hut, leaving the bonfire to fizzle out as the sun rises the next morning.

By the time Jemilla had made it back to their home, Raksha and Ignis had both fallen asleep. They had had a long day. Jemilla carefully laid them down in the small bed by the fireplace, making sure they were comfortable. She removed Raksha’s anklets and necklace and set them on the table to make sure she slept peacefully through the night. By the time she turned around, she saw Zazzalil had already passed out in their own bed without even finding the energy to pull the blanket up. She couldn’t help but smile.

Jemilla carefully did the same for Zazzalil, removing all of her accessories and tucking her in so she slept peacefully. She just wanted her girls to be happy. By the time she was sure no one would wake up in the middle of the night, she was near passing out herself. So she laid herself in her wifes arms and just like a light, she was out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eeee i love this story! im having a lot of fun writing and i hope you guys are enjoying reading it. i have lots of plans


	4. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> training ignis and some family times

The entire tribe had had such fun at the celebration the night before. But they had to get back to work now, no matter how much they sang about not doing it. Emberly went off to gather food with Keeri, Grant stayed and played with some of the younger tribe members, Smelly-Balls began to stare at the grass again, Tiblyn pretended she was holding up the sky again so she didn’t have to do anything, and Ducker… was just Ducker. So they were set to have a pretty productive day. Maybe.

The leaders of the tribe had a special task now though. They had a small puppy to help their daughter train. Or Jemilla did. Zazzalil said she’d help once she knew how to sit. Which meant she probably wouldn't be helping with the training ever.

⫷⫸

“Mama, mama! Wake up! Ignis is trying to steal our food!” 

Jemilla blinked her eyes open, furrowing her eyebrows. She was still absolutely exhausted from the night before so her awareness of what was happening was nearly nonexistent. 

“Raksha… Why aren’t you in bed?” Jemilla mumbled, feeling a half-awake Zazzalil hold her tighter.

“Cause Ignis is taking food!” Raksha shook her mom awake. 

Jemilla looked to where some mysterious rustling could be heard. Ah, of course. “Oh, gosh, Ignis!” Jemilla pushed herself up to her feet, ignoring how Zazzalil whined when she left.

“I meant to put on her collar last night but you two were so peaceful.” Jemilla sighed, fastening a handmade, leather collar around Ignis’s neck. She then picked her up and attached the collar to a rope that was staked into the ground. It had enough room for her to run around and cuddle on the beds but she just couldn’t reach the food.

Raksha frowned. “Do we have to tie her up like that, mama?” 

Jemilla sighed, nodding. “Yes, Raksha. Hopefully only while she’s training. She has to learn to not rummage through the food like that.” She pulled out two food bowls that had been made especially for Ignis.

Raksha looked at the whimpering puppy. “But she looks so hungry!” 

“Well, I never said we weren’t going to feed her, baby.” Jemilla carefully filled up a bowl with food and another one with water. “Give these to her, alright?” She offered them to Raksha. “She has to know that you’ll take care of her.”

Raksha nodded. “Okay…” She very carefully carried the bowls to her puppy, setting them on the floor in front of her. Raksha took a seat on her bed, staring at her puppy as she ate. 

Jemilla smiled with a certain amount of pride on her face. Her daughter was the best thing in her life. Along with Zazzalil who was currently in bed and whining for Jemilla to come back.

“Jemilaaaaaaaaa!” 

Jemilla sighed, crawling back into bed with her wife. “Yes?”

Zazzalil wrapped her arms around Jemilla and spooned her like there was no tomorrow. “Nothing.”

⫷⫸

A few months passed and the temperature dropped. That didn't stop Jemilla and Raksha though. Ignis was a wonderful dog but they had to be sure she was fully trained. So, out into the snow they went. Jemilla made sure they were bundled up in warm fur jackets and boots. Even Ignis had her own pair of puppy boots. Should be enough to keep them warm.

Jemilla grabbed the bag of treats, gave Zazzalil a goodbye kiss, and led her daughter and dog just outside their tribe's small village. 

"Alright, Raksha," Jemilla said, turning to face her daughter. "Today we're gonna test Ignis's skills. If it goes well, then we can consider her all trained."

Raksha smiled. "Really? She'll be all done?"

Jemilla shrugged. "Maybe. That's what we're gonna find out." She pulled out her pouch of dog treats and handed it off to Raksha. "Start off simple with basic commands. We'll get into the harder ones later. And only give her a treat if she does it right, okay?"

Raksha sighed, tying the pouch to her belt. "But she always looks so sad! I just wanna make her happy!"

Jemilla gave her a look. "If you only feed her, then she's not gonna learn, baby." 

Raksha pouted a little, pulling out a treat. "Fine. Ignis, sit." She did a little hand signal and Ignis did her thing. She sat right down. Raksha applauded, feeding Ignis her treat. "Good girl!" She grinned.

Jemilla beamed with pride. "See? She's a good dog so you don't even have to worry about not giving her the treat."

Raksha nodded. "I guess so. What tricks should she do next?" 

"Just go through all of them," Jemilla told her. "You know, roll over, lay down, stand, yeah?"

Raksha nodded. "Got it." She went through all of Ignis's basic commands, having her stand, lay down, rollover, jump over a stick. All the fun little tricks they had taught her over the last few months. She did all of them with ease.

Jemilla did a little applause when Raksha and Ignis completed all the commands. "Very good, you two! She's pretty good at all these tricks, huh?" 

Ignis barked.

Raksha giggled, nodding. "Mhm! She's the best!" She grinned up at her mom, leaning into her side. 

"Yeah, she kinda is." Jemilla patted her daughter's back. "Are you ready for the harder tricks, baby?" 

Raksha nodded. "Definitely!" 

"Alright. Let's start off with her injury response. So, walk a few paces away and pretend to fall over, okay?"

Raksha nodded again. "Okay." She did just what her mom said. She walked a couple of yards away before falling dramatically into the snow. Ignis came over and nudged her a few times but Raksha stayed still. Ignis immediately ran to Jemilla and barked to signal something had happened before running right back to Raksha's side. Just like she was supposed to. 

"Perfect, Raksha!" Jemilla looked up to her daughter just to see her already feeding treats to the dog. 

"Isn't she amazing?" Raksha beamed, giving her dog a hug. 

Jemilla laughed softly. "Yes, she's perfect, baby." She teased. "Are you ready for the next one?" 

Raksha nodded. "Yep!"

And so more commands and responses it was. They went through the rest of the tricks and helpful bits they had taught the pup. Stuff like fetch, basic animal tracking, scent following, and ending with 'home'. Arguably, the best one. Ignis led them straight back to their hut—something Ignis had gotten especially good at. No matter how far into the forest they had gone out, she was always able to bring them back to the village. It was pretty comforting for Jemilla to know that Raksha would probably never get majorly lost. Unless she lost Ignis- nope, that’s not something to think about.

⫷⫸

When Jemilla and Raksha arrived back home, Zazzalil was exactly where they had left her; in bed, with the fire crackling in the corner. It was cold so they didn’t blame her. That was exactly where they wished they had stayed all day. Zazzalil looked up when she heard the front door of the hut open, a smile immediately appearing on her face. "Well, hey, you two. How'd it go?" She sat up, wrapping her blanket around her shoulders.

Raksha grinned, sitting in her mothers' lap. "It went amazing, mama! Ignis knows every trick we taught her!"

Zazzalil smiled. "Oh, really? She's a smart one, eh?" She watched the dog curl up next to her and gave her a few scratches.

Jemilla nodded. "Oh, yeah. She's amazing." She sat next to Zazzalil, leaning into her warmth. 

Raksha nodded in agreement. "Mhm! She's perfect! And the best birthday gift ever!" She gave Zazzalil a big hug.

Zazzalil laughed softly. "I'm glad you like her, baby. But I will say, it was very much Jemilla's idea."

Jemilla gave her a look. "Oh, shut up, you still helped."

"I really didn't."

"Yes, you did."

"Shh," Raksha insisted. "Ignis is sleeping."

Zazzalil and Jemilla both looked down at their dog in unison. So she was. 

"Maybe you two should get some sleep too," Zazzalil responded quietly. "You had a long day out in the snow."

Jemilla yawned. She hadn't even realized how tired she had gotten. "What about dinner, Zazz?"

"I've got it. I'll wake you up when it's ready." Zazzalil kissed Jemilla’s head and carefully moved Raksha into her arms. 

“You’re the best, Zazzy.” Jemilla pulled her wife down for a real kiss.

Raksha made a face, curling closer to her mother’s chest. “Gross!”

“Shh…” Zazzalil shushed. “Ignis is sleeping.”

Raksha gasped. “Don’t use my words against me!”

“Yeah, Zazzalil.” Jemilla gave her a look.

“Shh… Go to sleep…” Zazzalil kissed Raksha and Jemilla’s head before getting up to go make the three of them some dinner. She wasn’t all that surprised to hear them still whispering and giggling to each other in the corner. They were her silly little girls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!


	5. Ouch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> raksha ran away but they find her. even if she's not in peak condition

Zazzalil wasn’t sure what happened. It was all a blur of anger and yelling and confusion. She didn’t even remember why her and Raksha had started arguing. Something about hunting and not wanting to do it. She remembered that wasn’t how it ended though. Raksha said she wasn’t a good leader. She wouldn’t apologize. And then, she just ran away into the forest. Raksha was missing and it was Zazzalil’s fault. 

How was she gonna tell Jemilla?

⫷⫸

Zazzalil sat outside the house for a long while, just wondering what she should do. In eight years, she had never gotten in a fight with her daughter like that. Maybe hunting and fighting really wasn’t for Raksha. Maybe she should think a little before she talked. Maybe she really was a bad leader. She didn’t know. And she didn’t have time to wonder about it.

“Hey, Zazz,” Jemilla said, approaching her wife. “Where’s Raksha? Aren’t you supposed to be out hunting?”

Zazzalil sighed, not bothering to lift her head from her knees. “I dunno.”

Jemilla sat down, concern written all over her face now. “What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I mean I don’t know, Jemilla! I-” She looked up at Jemilla, pausing. Maybe yelling wasn’t the way to go. “Sorry. Sorry, I just… I don’t know where Raksha is, J-mils. We started fighting over… something dumb. She didn’t wanna hunt and I shouldn’t have pushed her and now she’s gone and It’s my fault.” Zazzalil went back to resting her head in her knees. 

“Hey, take a deep breath. We’ll find her, okay?” Jemilla gently rubbed Zazzalil’s back. Deep down, she was about ready to have a breakdown after hearing Raksha was gone. But it’d be fine. Probably.

“But what if she’s not okay, Jem? What if she’s hurt? What if Ignis got hurt and she can’t find her way back home? She’s already been gone for two hours, for god sakes!” Zazzalil had gotten lost in the fears and possibilities and the nightmares. If they lost Raksha, it would break her.

Thankfully, Jemilla was still grounded in reality. They wouldn’t lose her maybe probably. “Hey. We are not going to lose her, Zazzalil. If she’s not back by morning, we’ll send out search parties, okay?”

Zazzalil sniffed, nodding. “Okay. Yeah, it’ll be fine. It’ll be-”

She was promptly cut off by a bark. It was coming from the edge of the forest. Jemilla and Zazzalil both looked up to see Ignis standing there, no Raksha in sight. That just made them both more scared.

“Ignis, where’s Raksha?” Jemilla asked, fear in her voice.

Ignis barked again before running back into the forest. Jemilla and Zazzalil shared a look before following Ignis deep into the forest. Zazzalil hadn’t gone out this far in years, and Jemilla never had. They both started to wonder if Ignis even knew where she was going. But after a little while of running, they saw her. Raksha.

Shit.

Raksha was laying under a large oak tree, absolutely covered in scratches and bruises. Those weren't there before. Jemilla and Zazzalil were both scared she wouldn’t be breathing when they kneeled next to her. But she was. She was breathing peacefully, almost like she wasn’t covered in injuries and certainly in pain. 

Zazzalil zoned out at that point. Her worries and fear got to her and she didn’t even realize Jemilla was talking. Until she was snapped out of it of course.

“Zazzalil!” Jemilla snapped her fingers to get her out of her head. “Zazzalil, Raksha is going to be fine. Stop worrying, okay? We need to get her home.”

Zazzalil looked up at her wife. She was a little confused and scared but she got there. “Okay… okay, yeah.” She carefully lifted Raksha into her arms. She had to be the one to bring her home. This was her fault anyway.

Jemilla looked concerned. Zazzalil clearly wasn’t doing well. “Are you okay, Zazz?”

“I’m fine, Jemilla. We- we need to get her home.”

Jemilla sighed. She couldn’t argue with that. “Alright… We’re gonna talk about this later though.” She sighed again and turned around. “Ignis, home.”

⫷⫸

An hour passed. Jemilla and Zazzalil had arrived home safely, Ignis and Raksha in tow. Raksha still hadn’t woken up. Zazzalil was anxious she never would. Jemilla wasn’t. She was the peacebringer and if she wanted to bring peace back, Raksha had to wake up. She had to. Otherwise, they were gonna have some problems.

Since they got home, Zazzalil had been sitting in bed, gently rocking her daughter as she hummed. Just like she did when Raksha was a baby. Jemilla meanwhile was silently washing the blood and dirt off of Raksha's skin. Might as well make sure she's clean for if– when. when she wakes up. 

Zazzalil finally sighed, watching Jemilla do her work. "What if–"

"She will, Zazzalil. She'll wake up." 

Zazzalil opened her mouth to say more but decided not to. That was all she had. Worries and anxieties about what could happen. 

They sat for a few more minutes in complete silence. Both of them were scared. What if she really didn't wake up? What if she hit her head so bad they couldn't save her? What if–

"Mama?" 

Jemilla and Zazzalil both froze. Neither of them had noticed that Raksha had woken up. They were both way too worried.

"Raksha?" Zazzalil said, looking down at the girl in her arms. "Are you okay, baby?"

Raksha mumbled something, curling closer to her mom. "Head… mmm." She whined, holding onto Zazzalil's arm like a lifeline.

"Oh, gosh, Raksha…" Jemilla moved to sit closer to her family. "Do you remember what happened?"

"Ran… Then I fell from… high." 

Jemilla frowned. "Alright, baby… You're gonna have to stay in bed for a while, okay? You really hit your head out there." 

"Mhm…" Raksha leaned into Zazzalil, taking in the comfort. She didn't wanna run away ever again. "Sorry." 

Zazzalil's heart broke into a million pieces. Oh, god, what the hell did she do? "Hey, it's okay, baby. It's okay. I shouldn't have yelled. I'm sorry too."

"Mmm…" Raksha buried her face in her mother's chest, not even realizing that Zazzalil was on the verge of tears at this point.

Jemilla looked up at Zazzalil. Oh, god, they're both sad. "Hey, c'mere, you two." She scooted closer, letting Zazzalil lean into her as she cried. "Everyone's okay now. Everything is just fine."

Jemilla held her girls close for hours, letting them both cry once or twice and even taking her own turn. She just wanted them to be happy. So, she couldn't help but smile a bit when she looked down to find them both finally sleeping peacefully in her arms. Just how it should be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hahaha angst! thanks for reading!


	6. Mountains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some nice wintertime family bonding to make up for the last chapter

Months passed, seasons changed, and everyone got a little older. It had taken Raksha a month or two but she fully recovered from her fall, only coming out with a few small scars from some of the deeper scratches. Zazzalil and Jemilla lovingly called them her battle scars. She was their little survivor. 

But now, it was winter. The snow had fallen heavily that year, leaving them with nearly a foot and a half of snow. With some teamwork, the tribe managed to keep most of the village shoveled out. Enough to get from hut to hut. But there was still snow everywhere, and that meant it was time for some winter fun.

⫷⫸

Jemilla loved sledding. Molag used to break off big pieces of tree bark for her and push her down the hill when she was a kid. It was still one of Jemilla’s favorite things to do during the winter months. So naturally, she took Raksha and Zazzalil out into the snow for a sledding adventure. 

They walked for a little while to find the spot, Zazzalil making the most complaints. That was normal though. The firebringer wasn’t a fan of the snow and winter. It was wet and cold. She preferred things to be warm in every aspect. But she’d still accept some bonding time with her family. Even if it meant going out to face the cold. 

“Aha! Here it is!” Jemilla smiled, taking Raksha’s hand and walking her forward. “This is where I used to play when I was your age, Raksha. Zazzalil even joined me sometimes.”

Zazzalil laughed a bit. “You mean you joined me and Keeri. I never joined you in anything.”

“Close enough.” Jemilla shrugged. 

Raksha meanwhile was distracted by the new landscape. She grew up in a clearing in the forest, the entire village is surrounded by trees. The land was flat and flooded with different types of plants. But now, she was on a small hill, close to a mountain that she had only ever seen from a distance. It was where her moms had grown up, in the caves and on the rocky cliffs. Definitely a different environment. 

“You ready to sled, baby?” Jemilla asked, looking down to the little girl beside her. Or not so little. She was already ten.

Raksha nodded. “Okay.” She looked down at the hill. It wasn’t that steep but it was tall. “Can we go together–” She was cut off by the sound of Zazzalil cheering as she went down the hill, Ignis chasing her all the way down. Zazzalil rolled off her sled and into the snow when she reached the bottom. Ignis immediately went up and started to lick her face. Of course. 

“Yes, of course, we can go down together, Raksha.” Jemilla gave her a little smile and set the sled in place. “Alright, sit right there, okay?”

Raksha nodded, sitting in place. She felt her mom sit on the sled behind her and it began to shift. 

“Here we go!” Jemilla held on tightly to Raksha as they sled down the hill, making sure neither of them fell off. They both cheered and yelled all the way down just as Zazzalil did. And, thankfully, they made it down to the bottom with no catastrophes, even landing right next to where Zazzalil was laying with Ignis. 

“Hey there, girlies.” Zazzalil sat up, smiling at her little family. 

“Hey, beautiful,” Jemilla teased, standing up off of her sled. “You guys wanna go down again?”

Raksha nodded, standing up just like her mom. “Yes, yes, yes! Come on, mom!” She tugged on Zazzalil’s arm, helping her stand. 

“I’m coming, I’m coming. But I think we’ve gotta do something first…”

“What, mama?”

“Zazzalil…” Jemilla gave her wife a look. “What are you thinking?”

Zazzalil shrugged. “Just…” She suddenly tossed a snowball right at Jemilla. 

Jemilla paused. Well. “Oh, this is war. I’m gonna get you, Zazzy!” They broke out into a full snowball battle, all three of them tossing snowballs every which way. They were giggling and shrieking as they were all pelted with snowballs. It died down after a little way and they ended their adventure with a few more rides down the hill. 

It had turned out to be a long day and as they started their walk home, the sun slowly began to set over the trees of the forest. Jemilla couldn’t help but think it was a little romantic. She leaned over to kiss her wife. Ah, romance.

“What was that for?” Zazzalil asked, eyebrows furrowed.

Jemilla shrugged. “Just wanted to, I dunno.”

“Are you guys kissing again?” Raksha called back. She had been leading the group with Ignis.

“Definitely not, Raksha. Just walking.” Zazzalil responded, taking Jemilla’s hand in her. 

“I don’t believe you!” Raksha sighed, following the footsteps of her mother from earlier that day. 

“You don’t have to.” Zazzalil gently leaned against Jemilla’s side, enjoying all her warmth. She couldn’t wait to cuddle in bed with her. She was getting chilly.

⫷⫸

They walked for a little while longer until they finally arrived back at home. Zazzalil immediately set a fire in their little fireplace, letting out a sigh of relief as soon as she felt the heat on her skin. She stayed by the fire as the heat began to fill up the small hut. It was only a matter of time till Raksha came and curled up beside her with one of her blankets. Then, Jemilla came and joined them. They didn’t say anything. They just sat comfortably in the silence, enjoying the warmth of each other and the fire. 

Zazzalil stayed awake for a while, watching the flames dance and the wood burn to nothing but ash. She pulled her tired eyes away from the fire to see Raksha asleep with her head in her lap and Jemilla asleep on her shoulder. She didn’t blame them. That snowball fight had been pretty intense. But now they were safe and sound in their cozy home. None of them could ask for anything more than that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mm yes little cuties. thanks for reading!


	7. Summer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they go for a nice swim. just good times.

Summer. This was Zazzalil’s time to shine.

Zazzalil always loved summer. It was always so warm and sunny. She loved to go lay in the grass and watch the clouds pass by or go hop in the lake and go for a swim. Though Zazzalil would really do whatever as long as she was out in the nice, warm sunshine with her wife and daughter beside her. But today just so happened to be her day to decide what to do. So a swim in the lake it is.

⫷⫸

Zazzalil happily led her family down the path through the forest, humming a tune from the old days as they walked. She hadn’t told Jemilla or Raksha where they were going. She just told them to get up and follow her. Jemilla was slightly concerned as per usual and Raksha was just a lot more interested in the deer and rabbits they saw as they walked.

Soon, Zazzalil led them onto the shore of a small lake. She remembered sneaking away here with Keeri when she was a kid. It was full of the best memories. A lot of them involved screaming because they never learned what fish were. But that’s beside the point. She turned around to face her family, smiling like a damn idiot.

“So? What about a nice day in the lake, eh?”

Jemilla raised an eyebrow. “Zazz, you do realize neither of us has learned how to swim, right?”

Zazzalil shrugged. “Okay? I taught myself. It’s actually pretty easy. Watch this.” She pulled off her necklace and her anklets before she climbed up on a little rock and dived straight into the lake. This made Jemilla jump a little. She had never done this before. 

“Oh, gosh, Zazz, be-... careful.” She sighed.

Raksha gasped, immediately running up to the edge of the rock just to see her mom treading water below her. “I wanna go in!”

Zazzalil smiled. “Then come on in! I’ll even catch you.” She held out her arms for Raksha. “Don’t forget to take off your necklace, baby.”

“Yes, mama.” Raksha pulled off her necklace and her armband before hopping right into Zazzalil’s arms, letting out a short shriek on the way. “Ah! It’s cold!” She held onto her mom’s arm, unsure of how to stay afloat.

Zazzalil laughed softly, holding Raksha’s head above the water. “Well, if you wanna swim you’re gonna have to get used to it. Let’s get you somewhere a little more shallow so you can learn, alright?” She carefully swam the two of them into shallow water, near the shore where Jemilla still stood. “Alright, Raksha, I don’t want you swimming into deeper water without me, okay? It can be really dangerous.”

Raksha looked out at the lake ahead of them. It was dark and… kind of scary. She could agree to that. She nodded, looking back up at her mom. “Yes, mama.”

Zazzalil smiled. “Good. Now…” She looked up to the beach. Jemilla was standing there, clearly concerned. “Come on in, J-mils! The water’s just right.”

Jemilla quickly shook her head. “I would really rather not, Zazz!” 

Raksha furrowed her eyebrows, bouncing on the sand below her feet. “Come on, mama! Mom’s gonna teach us to swim!”

“Yeah, Jemilla! You don’t wanna miss your lesson, do you?” Zazzalil gave her a look.

Jemilla sighed. “Fine… Fine.” She pulled off her little anklets and armband before cautiously walking into the water.

Zazzalil smiled. “It’s not that hard, see? Just a bit of water.”

“Actually it’s a lot of water and it’s dangerous.” Jemilla stopped next to Zazzalil, holding onto her arm like a bit of a lifeline despite the fact that her head was well above the surface. 

Zazzalil nodded. “Mhm… Raksha? Do you think mom’s scared?”

Raksha nodded. “Definitely.”

Jemilla furrowed her eyebrows. “Wha– I am not scared! I’ve just never done this before.”

“So… you’re scared,” Zazzalil said, very sure of her deduction.

“I–” Jemilla sighed. She was never going to hear the end of this. “Okay, fine, maybe a little.”

Zazzalil smiled. “It’s okay to admit it, Jem. But now we’re gonna get you over that fear, alright? You guys ready to learn to swim?”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Raksha cheered. Meanwhile, Jemilla just groaned. 

“Perfect! Now, it’s really easy, okay? But it’s tiring too. So don’t overthink it that much but if you feel tired I want you to swim back to the beach immediately. Drowning is strictly prohibited.” Zazzalil looked between them both to make sure they understood. “Alright. Now… we swim!” She pushed away from her family and dove under the water.

Jemilla looked anxious. She didn’t trust the water. She didn’t know what was in there. “Oh, gosh…”

Raksha on the other hand was fascinated by what was happening. “Mom! Look! She’s like a fish!” She pointed to Zazzalil’s figure moving gracefully under the water. 

“Something like that.” Jemilla sighed.

Zazzalil swam back up to her girls. The second she poked her head above the water she cupped Jemilla’s face and pulled her in for a kiss. Jemilla melted into the kiss, practically forgetting she was standing in four feet of lake water right now. Until Zazzalil fell back into the lake and pulled her wife with her.

Jemilla shrieked, falling on top of Zazzalil. “Oh, I am going to get you!” She dove into the water and chased her wife through the lake while Raksha stayed behind and chanted “Fight! Fight! Fight!” That’s one way to get Jemilla to swim.

⫷⫸

They swam and splashed each other with water for a while. The weather was perfect for it. But soon, they all started to feel a bit exhausted. So, they finally got out of the water and grabbed all the things they left on the beach. Thankfully, nothing was lost so they set out for home. Small droplets of water covered the path they took like little breadcrumbs because they had a lack of towels. But despite being exhausted and soaked, they made it home. Safe and sound. 

Jemilla stepped into the house first, pushing some things out of the way to make sure nothing valuable got water on it. That included Ignis. “Alright, come on, you two. Change clothes quickly so we don’t ruin anything.” She tossed both of them their extra set of clothes before she got to changing her own clothes. Her extra pair just so happened to be her old two-piece set. Most of the shells had fallen off of it so she made herself a new dress. She couldn’t let the old one go though.

Zazzalil smiled when she saw what Jemilla was wearing. She always thought she looked nice in that outfit. Zazzalil tossed on her own spare dress before walking up to her wife and pulling her close. “You look nice in this, you know.” She pulled her wife down for a kiss. 

“Gross!” Raksha exclaimed. Ignis emphasized it by barking. 

Jemilla laughed softly, resting her forehead against Zazzalil’s. “Mhm. I think it’s nice personally.”

Zazzalil smiled. “Me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> stay tuned for the next chapter. it'll be a good and/or a bad one depending on how you wanna put it. thanks for reading!


	8. Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i dont have a summary im just sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw for blood, murder, death (but nothing too graphic)

The village was quiet on that beautiful spring morning. Zazzalil woke up beside her wife and daughter just like she always did. The sunlight was streaming through the small holes in the roof, making a pattern of randomly placed dots along the walls and floors. Not a thing was out of the ordinary. Zazzalil couldn’t help but smile. It was so warm and comfortable. 

She rolled over and wrapped her arms around Jemilla, smiling wider as she took in her warmth. Mornings like this made everything so worth it. Zazzalil knew she would have to get up soon and work today but there was no reason not to enjoy the morning. She had a wonderful family that she needed to appreciate. 

Soon, Jemilla began to stir. She turned around in her wife's arms, smiling to herself. “Zazzalil?” She mumbled, leaning into her. “What are you doing up so early?”

Zazzalil shrugged. “Just loving you, Jem. How’d you sleep?”

“Good.” Jemilla leaned up to give her wife a kiss. “Had some cool dreams about you, you know. Some… fun ones.”

Zazzalil smirked. “Maybe we’ll have to make those dreams a reality later.” She gently pushed her wife on her back and pushed herself on top. She straddled Jemilla’s waist, that smirk still there. “Or now.”

Jemilla sighed. “As beautiful as you are, Raksha and Ignis are about five feet away and they don’t need to see that.”

Zazzalil groaned, laying on top of Jemilla. “Fine… we better do it later though.”

“We will, Zazz.” She kissed Zazzalil’s head. 

“Good. It better-”

Zazzalil and Jemilla both froze, looking straight at each other. They both heard footsteps running straight past their house. It could be a member of their tribe, but they were a lazy tribe. They wouldn’t be up at this time. So, either someone had somehow managed to actually get up at a reasonable time, or that person wasn’t from their tribe. 

Zazzalil signaled for her wife to be quiet before pushing herself up and grabbing her spear. Maybe she was paranoid, but she didn’t want anyone to be attacked. She stepped outside, looking around the hut for any sign of danger. But there was none. She thought she’d come out here and find someone standing there with a knife but nope. Nothing. Zazzalil looked out into the forest, the shadows cast by the sun giving her a sinking feeling in her stomach. Even if she couldn’t see it, something was wrong. 

Suddenly, out of one of the trees, an arrow came flying right at Zazzalil. She had quick instincts though. She hopped out of the way, watching as it flew straight into the wall of her hut. Thankfully, it got stuck there. No one was hurt. Without thinking, she threw her spear straight into the tree the arrow came from. She made a direct hit. She watched in semi-horror as this guy's body came tumbling down the tree, her spear sticking out of his chest. She was frozen for a moment. She just killed a man. What the fuck was happening?

⫷⫸

“Attack!”

Well, she didn’t recognize that voice so that means it was time to run. Zazzalil ran and grabbed her spear before running back to her hut. She could already see people from another tribe closing in on the village. Shit. 

“Up! Up! Everyone up, quick!” Zazzalil tossed Jemilla a spear before pulling Raksha up onto her feet. 

Raksha shrieked in surprise. She was still barely awake at this point. “Wha- What’s happening?” She looked between her moms, clearly confused and scared.

“Raksha, I need you to take Ignis and go hide in the forest. Do not come out or talk to anyone unless it’s me or Jemilla, okay?” Zazzalil frantically tossed a few necessities into a bag and handed it to Raksha. “You have to promise me you’ll stay hidden, okay? Don’t go to the lake, don’t go to the mountain, stay in the forest.”

Raksha nodded quickly, holding her bag against her chest. “O- Okay.”

Zazzalil nodded back, just as scared as her daughter. “Okay. Good.” She gave Raksha a hug. She honestly wasn’t sure if she’d ever do it again. “Mom and I will come find you, okay? But for now, you need to run.” Zazzalil pulled back. This hurt.

Raksha nodded again. She hated how serious everything was. It was too sudden. “Okay. I- I love you, mama.”

Zazzalil pushed back her tears, kissing Raksha’s forehead. “I love you too, baby. But you need to run. Run fast and don’t look back. Go.” She watched her daughter run through the door and off into the village, Ignis trailing behind her as she barked. She really wished she had the time to cry but she had a wife and tribe to worry about.

“Get off me, bitch!”

Jemilla’s voice. That didn’t sound good. 

Without a second thought, Zazzalil grabbed her spear and ran outside. She saw that basically the whole tribe had woken up and was now fighting off these attackers with anything they had. Grant was hitting some guy over the head with one of his paintings, Emberly was smashing people’s heads with bowls, Tiblyn had some strong arms so she was just punching people like crazy. But the real thing she was focused on was some girl she had never seen before trying to stab Jemilla. Thankfully, Jemilla was strong so she was able to hold her off but it wouldn’t end well for her without some help. Zazzalil pulled this girl off of her wife, an arm around her neck and the spear to her back. “Either run right now or this spear is going in your back.”

The girl laughed. “What? You’re really gonna kill me? Ha! Everyone knows you only play the big brave firebringer to keep control of your tribe. It’s just empty threats.”

Well, if she didn’t wanna cry before, she definitely did now. “You know what? You tried to stab my damn wife. So shut up.” Zazzalil pushed the spear into her back, feeling the blood run down onto her hand. A new experience for her. Was it a good one? Debatable.

Jemilla gaped. “Oh, my- Did you just kill someone for me?”

Zazzalil let the girl go, watching her now lifeless body fall to the ground. “I… Yeah. I guess I did.”

“Kinda hot, not gonna lie.”

Zazzalil gave her a look. “Shut up and focus on not dying. I have some-”

She was abruptly cut off by a shriek from the other side of the village. Zazzalil and Jemilla would recognize that sound anywhere. Raksha. Without a second thought, Zazzalil and Jemilla both made a run for it towards the scream. When they finally made it to the source of the scream. Raksha was flailing and crying in the arms of a very muscular-looking guy and another equally buff man was walking with them to make sure she didn't get away. Raksha did everything she could but nothing would get them to leave her alone. 

Zazzalil's natural anger instincts kicked in and she immediately jumped on the man holding her daughter, completely ignoring how Jemilla protested this decision. "Don't touch my fucking daughter!" She went to stab this man but the other guy intervened too fast for her.

"She's not yours!" The second man pushed Zazzalil to the ground and tossed her spear away, leaving her on the ground in a whole lot of pain. He kicked her right in the rib while she was down, cracking one of the bones. "Who do you think left her on your doorstep?!"

"No, no, don't hurt her! Please!" Raksha cried, still unable to free herself. 

Tears streamed down Zazzalil's face as she tried to manage the pain. She refused to scream out and cry though. She didn't want to give this man that satisfaction. "Fuck… Fuck you. You did not painstakingly raise her! You did not give her any love! You– You dropped her off on the doorstep and you don't get her back now! Fuck!" She put her hand over her rib. That was painful. 

The man holding Raksha laughed. "You clearly understand nothing. Who knew your tribe was full of idiots? Come on." The two men walked off, Raksha still trying to break free and failing. two men walked off into the forest, Raksha still trying and failing to break free and get back to her mom's. Needless to say, not a good day. 

⫷⫸

Jemilla ran to Zazzalil’s side, yelling promises to find to Raksha that they would find her. She knew she couldn’t do anything as of now. If both her and Zazzalil got injured, it was over for everyone. It broke Jemilla’s heart to watch her baby get carried away. But they’d find her. They would. So, she turned her attention to Zazzalil. She wasn’t looking too good.

“Okay, Zazzalil, I need you to tell me where it hurts, okay? Please just do it this time.” Jemilla kneeled next to her, too scared to touch her yet.

Zazzalil shook her head, suppressing her sobs as much as she could. “No, no, go get Raksha, Jemilla. Please, she can’t… they can’t do that! She’s just a kid! She’s barely thirteen, Jem-! Fucking fuck!” She gripped the bottom of Jemilla’s dress, trying to manage the pain as best as she could. It was kinda hard when just breathing hurt like a bitch. 

Jemilla shook her head, cupping her wife’s cheek. “Zazz, I can’t. L- Look at them all. They’re all retreating.” She looked up, watching the attackers run off back into the forest. “They were here to take her. We need to have a plan to get her back.”

Zazzalil choked out a pained sob. “Jemilla, please… We- We can’t lose her.”

A few tears rolled down Jemilla's cheek. Ouch. "We won't, Zazzalil. But– But you can't do that if you don't tell me where it hurts, okay? We’ll figure it out.”

Zazzalil nodded, doing her best to relax. “Okay. Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well. sorry!


	9. Hostage(s)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> time at the attackers village.

Time with this new tribe wasn’t easy. Mostly because Raksha didn’t want it to be. She gave her captors an extremely hard time. Every day a man and woman who shared their features with her would come in and claim to be her biological parents and that she was stolen from them. According to them, there was a third tribe that took her and left her with her real moms for whatever reason. Raksha truly did not care though. All she said was that she wanted to go home. To her real home. She didn’t care about a biological link between them. She was here against her will and she made that extremely clear.

But nevertheless, she was still locked in a hut by herself with no signs of escaping or being let go. It did her bring some joy to see her “parents” so annoyed and frustrated. That was the best thing about this. 

“I’m only going to say this one more time, Ikki. You-”

“Not my name.” Raksha cut this woman off. She wasn’t in the mood.

The man sighed. “Well, Raksha certainly isn’t. That isn’t what we named you!”

“That isn’t what we named you,” Raksha mocked. “Do I look like I care? Either leave me alone or let me go home.” She pulled her knees to her chest, leaning against the wall of her… well, prison. She had been locked in for a week and a half. At least they fed her. 

The woman gaped. “You’re an ungrateful little one! We go in and fight off that stupid tribe to take you home and all you do is complain!”

“What?” Raksha looked up at them. “You want me to be grateful? You hurt my mom and my friends and you brought me here against my will. You don’t get to tell me to be grateful.” 

The man shook his head. “Come on, honey. She’ll learn to love her home someday.”

“No, I won’t!” Raksha watched them leave, curling closer to herself. She missed her family and she missed her friends. All she did was think about how to get back to them. So far she had nothing except to break down the door. She wasn’t strong enough for that though. She kind of wished she had another person with her. That would be mean though, to wish for that. No one else should have to suffer for her sake.

She sat alone for a while, replaying the scene of when they hurt her mom over and over in her head. It somehow hurt more and more each time she played it over. Raksha was pretty sure she wasn’t dead, but she knew she wasn’t okay. Well, no one involved was okay. That’s for sure. As she thought, she almost wished her mom had gotten taken with her instead of getting knocked down. They probably would’ve already escaped by now if that was the case. Zazzalil had a tendency to burn things down.

Soon, she noticed it had gotten a little louder outside. Something was going on out there. Half of her hoped it was her mom's, the other half knew it wasn’t. Maybe it’d be someone she knew though. She was lonely.

⫷⫸

Raksha waited, and waited, and waited, listening closely through the walls. She still didn’t know what was going on out there. But she did slowly start to realize it was someone from her tribe. Maybe she’d get to see them, maybe she never would again. All she could do was hope and wait. 

Soon enough, her wish did come true. In an odd way. The door to her private hut opened and someone pushed a kid onto the floor before shutting and locking the door once again. Raksha looked closer. Oh, yeah, she knew that person alright. It was only her best friend in the whole world.

“Kaa!” She jumped on him with a big hug, basically tackling him to the ground. She was lonelier than she thought.

“Whoa!” Kaa fell backward, landing with Raksha right on top. He looked up at her. Well, hello pretty lady. “Raksha? Wait, are you okay? Did they do anything to you?” He asked, jumping into his protective side.

Raksha shook her head. “No, they didn’t touch me. Except for the kidnapping thing… but I’m fine. Are you okay? Why are you here?” She gasped. “You shouldn’t be here! This is dangerous!”

Kaa furrowed his eyebrows. “Dangerous? I don’t know her. I’m perfectly fine.” He crossed his arms.

Raksha sat up, looking him over. She couldn’t help but notice the fresh bruise on his arm. “Then what’s that?” She pointed to it.

Kaa looked down at his arm. Oh. “...Shut up.”

Raksha giggled. “You won’t even admit you got a bruise? What are you? A big, strong hero?”

“Well, I came here to save you didn’t I?” He looked back up at her.

“Did it work?”

“No… but I still tried! And now the tribe knows where you are so we get to go home soon?”

Raksha’s face immediately lit up. She got to go home? That was the best news she had heard in a week. “Really? You better not be messing with me. I’m gonna go crazy if I stay in this hut for any longer.”

Kaa nodded. “Uh-huh! I was here with dad and he ran back home. Someone’s supposed to come to get us tonight.”

Raksha smiled wider. “You are amazing! I mean, I could kiss you!” She gave him a big hug to thank him.

Meanwhile, Kaa was having a sudden bit of panic. Kiss? Him? Her? Whoa. “Maybe you should?” Should he have said that? He didn’t know. Too late now though.

Raksha furrowed her eyebrows, lifting her head to look at him. “What?”

Kaa shook his head. “No, I didn’t say anything.”

“Yes, you did. You-”

“Nope, not a thing. Let’s change the subject!” He quickly said.

Raksha shook her head. “Nope, absolutely not. Either you’re gonna admit it or you’re gonna do the thing, no changing the subject.”

Kaa gaped. “Wha- Come on, that’s mean!”

They both continued to argue for hours. It started off as the kiss thing, and then it turned into the most random things. It didn’t end until Raksha finally passed out on top of him, completely exhausted from finally having someone she liked to interact with. Kaa just sat there holding her. All he could do was smile. That was his crush right there. He carefully leaned against the wall, holding her against his chest as she slept. He practically forgot that they were currently hostages.

Until the door opened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cliff hangers for the win. thanks for reading!


End file.
